If you are injured at work, what benefits are you entitled to? In general, as an injured worker, you are entitled to compensation for time missed from work, reasonable medical treatment, and compensation for permanently impairment. Let me explain those benefits in a little more detail. TIME MISSED FROM WORK - TEMPORARY COMPENSATION You are entitled to temporary weekly benefits if your condition has not yet stabilized and the authorized treating physician (the company doctor) has given you work restrictions that your employer cannot accommodate. There is a waiting period for these benefits, however. You will not receive benefits for the first week of work missed, but benefits should begin for the second week of work missed. If you miss more than 3 weeks of work, you will be paid back for the first week of work missed. Unfortunately, you are not paid temporary benefits for missed work due to doctor’s appointments. Your benefit rate is determined by a formula set by law. In general, you should expect to receive 2/3 of your average weekly wages earned at the time of the accident up to a statutory maximum amount. MEDICAL TREATMENT You are entitled to all reasonable medical treatment that may be needed to cure or relieve the effects of your injury. Under the law, your employer has the right to choose the treating physician. If the treatment you are receiving is not satisfactory, the insurance companies are usually not very cooperative about changing your treatment to suit your needs so you may need to consult with an attorney. There are many ways to go about obtaining satisfactory treatment, but each situation is unique. Feel free to give me a call to discuss this in further detail. Do note that you are eligible to receive reimbursement for mileage expenses for round trips greater than 5 miles for authorized treatment. Note that if you can’t find a way to get to the doctor appointments, the insurance company should provide you with transportation. However, usually it is best to drive yourself though as the insurance company is less likely to get you to the doctor on time. BENEFITS FOR PERMANENT IMPAIRMENT Benefits for permanent impairment are generally not available until your medical condition has stabilized and is unlikely to change much over the next year. When you reach this level, you are at “maximum medical improvement”. You will know when you reach this point because you won’t have any more follow up appointments with the treating physician. There are mathematical formulas set by law for determining the amount benefits you are entitled to. The factors that are relevant in determining the amount of your benefits are your average weekly wages, the doctor’s rating, and your ability or inability to return to work. Once you attend that last doctor’s appointment, give me a call to see if I can help you with your case. I’ll have a good sense at that point of whether or not I can make a difference for you. Hopefully you will receive a settlement offer from the insurance company shortly after this last doctor’s appointment, but that doesn’t always happen. However, don’t wait for this offer for too long. There are time deadlines that start ticking when the doctor releases you from treatment and if you miss them you are out of luck. TIME DEADLINES There are many time deadlines that are critical in workers compensation cases. The time deadlines are not always logical and if you miss a deadline the law is not forgiving. If you retain me as your attorney, I will keep track of all of these time deadlines for you and you won’t need to worry about it, but in case you don’t, I want you to be aware of what the deadlines are. First of all, make sure you report your accident to your employer right away. I know you may be apprehensive about doing this. Most people are apprehensive about telling their employer they were hurt at work, but if you don’t report it in a timely manner, you loose. Your time deadline for reporting the accident can vary depending on the type of injury, but to be safe, always report your accident within 10 days. Second, you must tell your employer in writing that you are seeking workers compensation benefits within 200 days of the accident or within 200 days of the last payment of compensation. This is a deadline that is frequently missed, especially when the employer knows about the accident and may even be providing treatment so it doesn’t occur to the injured worker to write to the employer and ask for benefits. Third, you must file an application for hearing with the division of workers compensation within 3 years of the date of accident or within 2 years of the date of the last payment of compensation, whichever is later. Fourth, your case must go to trial within 5 years of the filing of the application for hearing or you risk having your case dismissed for lack of prosecution. ATTORNEY FEES If you decide to retain me as your attorney, you do not have to pay me at that time. The fee for my services is 25% of the amount of money you receive after deducting costs like copy fees and expert fees. If you don’t receive any money for your injury, neither do I and you won’t owe me anything. CONCLUSION If you know you want to hire an attorney in your case, you are better off hiring an attorney sooner rather than later because the fee will likely be the same regardless of how long the attorney is involved in your case. You might as well have someone in your corner through the whole process if you know you want an attorney. If you are not sure whether or not you want to hire an attorney, there is nothing wrong with taking the wait-and-see approach, as long as you meet your time deadlines. For more information, please contact me at (785) 832-2181 or sjw@clarkeandwilson.com. Consultations are free and confidential!